Ich or nothing to worry about?

[Lolita]

I'm having trouble telling if my fish is sick or not. He's kind of a quirky fish to begin with, and always has been... so it's difficult for me to really narrow down his symptoms.

First off, I have one comet fish, Hyacinthus, in a ten-gallon tank with an 18-inch air stone in the back for filtration, along with an outer-tank power filter. His light is on only for short periods of time during the early part of the night, because my bedroom is well-lit.

The water temperature is 68 degrees F, and always has been, and it's crystal clear. I clean it out weekly, taking about 30% of the water out to replace it.

My problem is just this: Hya seems to be missing a few scales on his body, on either side. He's been like that for some time now. Because he's alone in the tank, I can rule out fish brutality as the cause.

I recently noticed that he's much more active than usual for certain periods of time, often darting around in circles. A few times I've noticed him rubbing against one column in his tank (it's set up like Greece), but he's only done it a few times, and it's only that one column.

I think he has a white speck on his head, and one on his tail fin--but no where else. They're not as white as other pictures of ick that I've seen, and they don't appear to be lifted at all.

I recently changed his diet from flakes to freezedried bloodworms. He also has peas once or twice a week, to clean out his system.

I'm mostly concerned about the missing scales, white spots, and odd swimming habits. He's usually a very mellow fish, and tends to hang around corners, or inside his temple--but as of late he's been anxiously active.

Should I be worrying, or is this just me being paranoid? (So sorry for the long post.. I figured it would be easier to explain everything here, than have you go into my profile...)

Thanks a lot for your help.

EDIT: I've noticed that he's swimming at a slant sometimes. Not like he has swim bladder disease, but he's slanted--and he'll swim normally like that...but only occasionally.

[crazyred]

Hi and welcome to Aquarium Pros Forums!!!!

I'm assuming by your profile that this tank has been set-up for around 5 months, so it's probably cycled, but do you happen to know what the water parameters are? It would help if I knew what the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH readings were.

Nothing jumps out at me right away other than it would appear you need a LOT more filtration on this tank. Airstones are not filters, all they do is provide surface agitation for O2. You need a HOB (hang on back) filter rated for at least 20-30 gallons. We always recommend 1.5-2 times the filtration for tanks, but in the case of goldfish, Ithink 2-3 times is better. A proper filter will help with chemical, mechanical, and biological filtration. Also, 10 gallons is a tad small even for one goldfish. I know it sounds ridiculous, but gold fish get really big and are really messy and they require fairly large tanks even for one (I'd recommend at least 29-30 gallons for him with 3x filtration).

I can't say anything for sure without the exact water readings, but it sounds a little like ammonia burns at this point. If you don't have test kits for the before mentioned stuff, you should be able to pick one up at your local fish store (LFS).

[Lolita]

Thanks for the reply! I did say that I have an HOB filter, for up to a 30 gallon tank. It's a marineland power filter.

I don't know the levels in the water. My problem is that my parents hate the fish, and I'm not allowed to spend much money on him. I have to sneak and save up all my change to buy him stuff. I wouldn't be allowed to buy him another tank that's any bigger. I'm sure I can scrape up some money to pick up a kit tomorrow, though, to test the PH levels, nitrite and nitrate levels.

[crazyred]

Oh, I'm sorry...I missed that part about the filter....my bad. :o Okay, your good there.

You don't necessarily need any money. Most LFS will test the water for you for free or for a very small fee ($2-3), usually it's free though. Just get some tank water in a clean container and take it over there. Be sure they give you the exact numbers, though. Don't let them tell you it's "fine". Nothing in the way of ammonia or nitrite is "fine" unless it's 0. Nitrates need to be 40ppm or below.

[Lolita]

The only store I have around is petco--would they do that for me? So far, they've been the anti-help for me. When I first got my fish, they told me I could put like 10 goldfish in my 2 gallon tank...

[crazyred]

Well, they may not be the best on fish advice (that's the worse advice I've heard in while BTW), but they should test your water for you...if not, see if you can get a kit. I got mine at an expensive LFS for like $15 and it tests for all the stuff I mentioned before. Petco should be cheaper than that. I got the Freshwater test kit by Aquarium Pharmaceuticals

[Lolita]

Petco's website says that the Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Freshwater/Saltwater Nitrite Test Kit is $8.99. The others are the same... DO you have to buy them separately? I don't see a kit for all three tests..

EDIT: Oh! I found it. ^_^ Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Step-By-Step Aquarium Set Up Kit. It's $11.49

Thanks a ton~!

[crazyred]

You're very welcome....as soon as you get your water readings let us know exactly what they are so we can tell you better what might be wrong with your fishy.

[Lolita]

^_^ I definately will. I'll probably post them tomorrow afternoon. I'll be up near petco all morning and early afternoon with my older sister, dress shopping for the theatre.

You've been a great help. I'm so glad I found this forum.

[crazyred]

We're glad you're here and I hope we can help you!! We love seeing new folks join and learning about their fishies!!

Welcome aboard, stay and ask as many questions as you need to.....we love it!!! ;)

[Lolita]

^_^ Good, lol, cause I'll probably have a lot. This is my first aquarium. I'm lucky that I have an incredibly resiliant fish.

I got the water levels before the water change. I'm doing a water change right now.

pH: 7.6
Ammonia: 1.0
Nitrate: 5.0
Nitrite: 0

x.x the ammonia and nitrate are high. Is the pH good? I've been told that 7.2-7.6 is the best for goldfish.

After the water change is finished, I'll do another test for each.

[Lolita]

Okay. The water has been changed. pH and Nitrite are both the same. Unfortunately, so is the Nitrate. The ammonia is at .5 now.

How should I lower the ammonia and nitrate?

[amethyst212]

right now your nitrate levels are high. this is because there is not enough bacteria to convert nitrate to nitrite which is more tolerable for fish. depending on the filter you have you should have a biological filter for the bacteria problem and an amonia remover. have you cleaned or changed the filter media in any way. this can help. let us know.

also i cant believe they told you you can have 10 goldfish in a 2.5 tank. you can only do that if you plan to feed the fish to a snake or something and you just want to keep them alive.

let us know what you do and if it works. also did you get the test strips that are 5 in 1 those are like the best. they are from mardel. GREAT STRIPS.

[amethyst212]

sorryi forgot about the white spots. has the fish gotten any more. this seems to be ick. if it is or not. the eggs from ick fall to the gravel and once they spawn will attach themselves again so transfer the fish to another keeping for now and clean the whole tank with plain water. im talking about clean the gravel and any ornament and plants that you may have. you dont want this bacteria back.
and super clean your filter. take a toothbrush you dont use clean it under hot water and srub every crevice of that filter..

[AngelMom]

right now your nitrate levels are high. this is because there is not enough bacteria to convert nitrate to nitrite which is more tolerable for fish. depending on the filter you have you should have a biological filter for the bacteria problem and an amonia remover. have you cleaned or changed the filter media in any way. this can help. let us know.
Adding ammonia remover during a cycle will only cause problems. The tank needs to cycle naturally in order to cultivate the probper bacteria and without the ammonia, they will not grow,

also did you get the test strips that are 5 in 1 those are like the best. they are from mardel. GREAT STRIPS.
Test strips are no where near as accurate as the liquid or tablet tests and are not recommended except as a qualitative check between the regular tests, then only if you have "calibrated" the strips to the other tests.

[amethyst212]

Well Someone Within A Budget As This Person Is On The Test Strips Will Do Just Fine. Just Talk To Your Lfs And Ask To Speak With A Fish Expert. Most Petcos Use The Test Strips And They Will Show You What Good For Ur Fishes Or Not.

Dont Get Discouraged.

[AngelMom]

Petco doesn't usually hire experts, and they tend to use the strips because they are cheaper for them. That doesn't mean it is the best thing to do.

[oscarbartoni]

Ammonia turns into nitrIte and then ito nitrAte. The results that you gave us as to the nitrite and nitrate do not sound right.
And with any ammonia reading that is too much. It sounds like the tank is cycling either again or still. How long have you had the tank set up? How big (not including the tail fin) is your fish? How long does it take for the fish to eat hes/her food, how much and what kind of food do you feed your fish? You might be overfeed your fish and the filter might not be able to keep up with the ammonia being produced. Do not let the fish train you into feeding them whenever you get near the tank but you train them that they will get enough and nt more.

[seanleila]

that sucks that you can't get a bigger tank. i had the same set up and i didn't think it would be a problem because i too thought it was ridiculous for one goldfish to need more than a 10g, but i learned the hard way and he/she died after living in those conditions for 2 yrs, despite regular water changes and good filtration. anyways i agree definitely with Angelmom do not use any chemicals to remove ammonia from your tank!!!!! sorry amethyst but that is just bad advice. this will prevent your tank from establishing the necessary bacterial colony it needs to break down ammonia and nitrites/nitrates. like they already told you your tank is probably still cycling. Oscar mentioned how much you feed your fish and i would just recommend just not feeding him for a day or two, he'll be just fine, that might help with the readings in your tank, since these high readings of yours can also be produced by overfeeding. i personally like the test strips but i have an established tank. if you can get the money together definitely go for the other test. the one they told you about, more accurate. oh yeah one more thing for sure these petstores DON"T have experts. never ask them for advice as you already know.. come on 10 goldfish in a 2 g???!!!

[amethyst212]

what i meant as an ammonia remover is a water conditioner many newbies do not think about water conditioners. right now i have a 2 fancy goldfish in a 29 gallon tank. the problems with these lfs is that they think its 2 gallons for every goldfish but wherever you got this advice from about 10 in a 2.5 is ridiculous.
i hope that the ick has gone away.
sometimes the saltwater treatment is good but not tolerable by all goldfish.

[AngelMom]

Even using a water conditioner that claims to remove ammonia is a bad thing whe you are trying to cycle a tank (they don't actually remove ammonia but "lock" it into a less harmfull state). If the tap water has no ammonia, when you put the clean water in the tank, the chemical in the conditioner will lock up some of the ammonia in the tank and it will mess with your cycle anyway.